Happy Fourth!

Or Happy Losers Day, as we Brits in America like to call it. In case you didn't know, people in England call today, well, Friday, July 4th, 2008!

I know, I shouldn't be working today, but I'm up early this morning thanks to my son Liam, who turns one on Tuesday, and I haven't done an entry in a while, so I figured I would drop bye and say hi with a few nuggets:

- In honor of today, I must first pay homage to three NFL players with great Independence Day names: Colin Allred, LB, Titans; LenDale White, RB, Titans; and Greg Blue, DB, Lions.

- Things have been pretty quiet in the NFL this week, except for those loud rumors about some old dude who plays for a team in Wisconsin wanting to come out of retirement. Brett Favre says he has the itch to play again? I bet Aaron Rodgers has the itch to crack Favre over the head with a 50-lb chunk of cheese right now. I'm sure there haven't been too many drafts yet, but if you picked Rodgers, I feel for you. We'll just have to let things play out, but as an early thought if he does come back, where does Favre rank among starting QBs? CBSSports.com has Rodgers ranked 15th right now, so you have to think Favre would be slightly higher than that. Eleventh, above Jay Cutler but below Matt Hasselbeck, sound about right? Does to me.

- The Bears have signed former Tulane running back Matt Forte to a four-year deal. With the release of Cedric Benson, Forte is now probably only just behind Darren McFadden in the rookie running back rankings, and could definitely end up with more carries than the former Razorback.

AP Photo / Mike GrollMatt Forte should start the season as the No. 1 back in Chicago.

Forte is currently being taken, on average, as the 30th running back in CBSSports.com drafts, just ahead of Kevin Smith and Fred Taylor and just behind Selvin Young and LenDale White. He sounds like a great sleeper No. 3 option to me, once you've secured your two horses.

- Joe Jurevicius had another knee surgery on Monday, and he could miss the start of training camp. Jurevicius lost his No. 2 wide receiver job in Cleveland to Dante Stallworth in the offseason, but the guy is always a threat to catch a touchdown when the Browns are in the red zone. His days as a legitimate Fantasy option appear to be done for now, but he might be worth picking up in deeper leagues as a free agent in the first half of the season if he gets healthy and the Browns passing offense continues to be effective.

- Speaking of knees, Dolphins RB Ronnie Brown says his surgically repaired one is ready to go. With the way Bill Parcells likes his teams to run the ball, Brown is an intriguing No. 3 RB in most Fantasy formats, and is being drafted, on average, with the 45th pick in CBSSports.com leagues.

- The Vikings have waived former University of Miami QB Kyle Wright. Since Vinnie Testaverde's heydays in the 90s, there hasn't been one Fantasy-viable former Hurricane quarterback in the NFL. Sad. Maybe they need to start paying their players in Coral Gables BEFORE they get into the league again.

AP Photo / Gene J. PuskarDrew Brees should be taken in the late second or early third round of most Fantasy Football drafts.

- Taking a look at where the Saints' Fantasy studs are being taken in CBSSports.com drafts: Drew Brees is going with the 21st pick on average, which makes him the fourth-highest QB; Reggie Bush is being taken with the 39th pick on average, and is the 19th most popular RB; Deuce McAllister is being taken at the 89th spot on average, which makes him the 34th running back; and Marques Colston is going at No. 24 on average, and is the seventh most popular wide receiver.

- That's about it for now, but I figured we would try and get an early mock draft going next week if anyone's up for it. Thursday, July 10th at 2 p.m. CT sound good to anyone? If so, drop me an email at yeoldefantasymaster@gmail.com, and I'll take the first 12 emails, plus maybe a couple of extra in case people drop out. It will happen at CBSSports.com, so you must have a log-in there.